ArticleFrontiers in microbiology2024
Electroacupuncture regulates gut microbiota to reduce depressive-like behavior in rats.
Article in Frontiers in microbiology, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 20 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
20 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 21 citations in OpenAlex.
- Research trends and hotspots of electroacupuncture for depression: a bibliometric and visual analysis (2005-2025).Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Pooled it
- Acupuncture for subthreshold depression: a randomized controlled trial.BMC complementary medicine and therapies · 2025Trial
- Gut microbiota mediates the antidepressant-like effects of xiaochaihutang: mechanisms involving inhibition of inflammation and enhancement of barrier function.Journal of natural medicines · 2026Article
- Electroacupuncture alleviates depression and gastrointestinal dysfunction by rebalancing GABAergic activity in the central amygdala.World journal of psychiatry · 2026Article
- Electroacupuncture Alleviates Brain Injury Through Vagus Nerve Activation and Gut Microbiota in a Rat Model of Ischemic Stroke.Journal of the American Heart Association · 2026Article
- Traditional Chinese Medicine Ameliorates Depression via the Gut-Brain Axis: A Review Focus on NLRP3/TLR4-Mediated Inflammatory Pathways and Gut Microbiota Modulation.Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment · 2026Review
- Electroacupuncture alleviates comorbid obesity and depression via the gut-brain axis: orchestrating SCFA-producing bacteria and hippocampal synaptic plasticity.Frontiers in microbiology · 2026Article
- Mechanism-Driven Translation of Electroacupuncture for Depression: Bridging the Gap Between Preclinical and Clinical Research.Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment · 2026Review
- Neuromodulatory Effects of Alternating Current Electroacupuncture on PTSD-like Behaviors via Gut-Brain Axis Communication.Brain sciences · 2025Article
- Electroacupuncture ameliorates Autism Spectrum Disorder via modulating the gut-brain axis depending on the integrity of vagus nerve.Translational psychiatry · 2025Article
- [Electroacupuncture at Zusanli improves blood lipid disorders in hyperlipidemic mice by improving gut microbiota structure].Nan fang yi ke da xue xue bao = Journal of Southern Medical University · 2025Article
- Acupuncture ameliorates inflammation by regulating gut microbiota in acute ischemic stroke.IBRO neuroscience reports · 2025Article
- Mechanisms of acupuncture in treating depression: a review.Chinese medicine · 2025Review
- Transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation regulates gut microbiota mediated peripheral inflammation and metabolic disorders to suppress depressive-like behaviors in CUMS rats.Frontiers in microbiology · 2025Article
- Gut microbiota as a novel target for treating anxiety and depression: from mechanisms to multimodal interventions.Frontiers in microbiology · 2025Review
- Antidepressant-Like Effects of Mongolian Medical Warm Acupuncture via Remodeling the Gut Microbiota-Metabolite-Barrier Axis in CUMS Rats.Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment · 2025Article
- Electroacupuncture Alleviates Neuropathic Pain and Negative Emotion in Mice by Regulating Gut Microbiota.Journal of pain research · 2025Article
- Study on the mechanism of acupuncture to improve mild cognitive impairment in hypertension by regulating intestinal microbiome.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2024Review
- Article
- The Value of PHQ-9 and GAD-7 for Screening Emotional Disorders in IBS-D and the Specificity of the Gut Flora Associated with Emotional Comorbidity: Preliminary Findings.Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Background and objectives: Growing studies show that gut microbiota is closely associated with depression. Acupuncture treatment could regulate the gut microbiota of many diseases. Here, we aim to observe the effect of electroacupuncture (EA) on gut microbiota in rats that showed depressive-like behavior. Materials and methods: The rats were randomly divided into normal group, chronic unpredictable mild stress model (CUMS) group, CUMS + electroacupuncture (EA) group, and CUMS + sham-electroacupuncture (Sham) group. The CUMS+EA rats were treated with EA stimulation at bilateral Zusanli (ST36) and Tianshu (ST25) acupoints for 2 weeks (0.7 mA, 2/100 Hz, 30 min/day). The rats in the sham EA group were treated with the same conditions without inserting needles and electrical stimulation. Behavioral tests were conducted by forced swimming test (FST), open field test (OFT), and sucrose preference test (SPT) to assess depression-like behavior in rats. The relative abundance of intestinal bacteria in rat feces was detected by 16S rRNA analysis. The expression of calcitonin-gene-related peptide (CGRP), vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP), somatostatin (SST), and adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) in serum was detected by ELISA kit, and VIP, CGRP, and SST in the colon were detected by qRT-PCR and Western blot. Results: Chronic unpredictable mild stress model rats exhibited depressive-like behaviors and had differential abundance vs. control rats. CUMS significantly decreased the relative abundance of Bifidobacterium and Streptococcus at the genus level, CGRP in plasma ( Conclusion: The antidepressant effect of EA at ST36 and ST25 is related to regulating intestinal flora and the neurotransmitter system. Our study suggests that EA contributes to the improvement of depression, and gut microbiota may be one of the mechanisms of EA effect.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.